Four of a Kind

[Anya Venari]

[member="Siobhan Kerrigan"]
There was a feeling like passing through a cold curtain of ice and then suddenly there was the feeling of heat, of fire. It was not a burning heat, it was an invigorating one, like one stepping from deep winter into midsummer warmth. The warmth flowed down every part of Siobhan’s body, filling her, blazing through her synapses and nerves. She would feel a rush, long forgotten, but now restored to prominence.

The Force, all of it. Complete. Undiluted. Beautiful.

As Siobhan jerked away, now restored, every Force user on the Arx, and possibly beyond, felt a surge of power as the phoenix rose from the shackles of injury and mortality and blazed to life.

When Siobhan opened her eyes she would be drenched in sweat and exhausted, but the two space elves would be standing over her. Tylania looked concerned, but Chesna just smiled slightly.

“Welcome back, it’s been a while for you, hasn’t it?” Chesna said softly.
“How do you feel?” Tylania asked, applying a cool flannel to Siobhan’s forehead.

 

[Siobhan Kerrigan]

[member="Anya Venari"]


The Lioness inside her roared, terrifying in its power and majesty. The power of the Dark Side of the Force welcomed her back into its embrace. When she arose, it coiled around her like a living cloak. For a moment, her eyes seemed to glow with the intensity of the phoenix ere they resumed their human colour. Her head pounded and she was exhausted, as if she was trying to stand after she had run a marathon. Her firemane was tousled and sweat rolled down her body. But she whole once more.


"Reborn. I am back to the way I am meant to be," the Lady spoke. She had climbed the plateau and was a Demigoddess once more. Leaning forward as Tylania cooled her forehead with a wet flannel, she gave the wood elf a kiss, then Chesna. "Thank you, my dears."

 

[Anya Venari]

[member="Siobhan Kerrigan"]
Tylania smiled and received the kiss on her cheek. Chesna took it full on the lips.
“My pleasure, Siobhan. You had something and then it was taken away, it is only fair you recovered it,” Tylania replied.
“Besides, it’s more fun with you going full on Karishzar,” Chesna commented.

Suddenly though the door burst open and Tempest stood there, lightsabre at the ready! She eyed the scene and relaxed.
“Ah, so you ladies were just having a bit of fun, huh?” she said, putting the weapon by her side. At their quizzical looks she waved a hand. “We felt something big happening here, everyone with the Force felt it, you were either dying or having a really nice night. Well, don’t mind me,” she said.

“Don’t be like that, Tempy, we were helping restore Miss…Siobhan’s powers,” Chesna said.
“Is that what we’re calling it now?” Tempest replied, looking between the three women.
“Your implications are incorrect…Tempest…was it? I was here to administer treatment to Lady Kerrigan, and it seems successful. The Force feedback you felt was an indicator of our success.”
Tempest looked unconvinced, but waited to hear it from Siobhan herself. Gotta milk the cameo as much as possible.

 

[Siobhan Kerrigan]

[member="Anya Venari"]


The door flew open and a wild Tempest burst in. "I reckon that if I was having a threesome with two Paragons, we would all be wearing a lot less and I would not be the only one who's hot and sweaty," Siobhan remarked dyly. It occured to her that she needed a shower. "My powers have been restored and I have returned to my rightful place as queen. Speaking of which, this means we shall continue with your training, Tempest."


Training or training? Hard to tell the difference sometimes. "And now I'm going to have a shower. Tempest, there are some matters we will discuss later." She actually meant business, in case anyone was wondering. Alas, the exhaustion made it difficult to stand. Especially since restoring her powers had not fixed her bad leg.

 

[Anya Venari]

[member="Siobhan Kerrigan"]
For the first time in her experience with her, Tylania coughed slightly, perhaps a little embarrassed.
“Yes indeed. You have no fear of this being a romantic liaison, Ms Tempest. I am merely assisting Siobhan in returning to full strength.”
She offered a hand for Siobhan to take so she could stand as she would doubtless be tired.

Chesna meanwhile was more direct and put Siobhan’s hand on her shoulder and helped the human stand, letting her lean on her. It helped that this closeness allowed her to get a kiss in.
“I’ll help Siobhan to the showers. You can reassure people, Tempy.”
Tempest shrugged. “Right. I’ll see you later, boss,” she said and vanished.

Soon that would leave Tylania alone in the room. She diligently set to work fixing things up and took a glass of water before returning to her quarters for a nap.

 

[Siobhan Kerrigan]

[member="Anya Venari"]


Presumably Siobhan would really love a threeway with two Paragons. Much like how she'd enjoyed her time with the Nenaias twins. Anyhow, she returned Chesna's kiss, though the liplock lacked the usual fire and dominance because she was more than a little tired and had trouble standing. Regardless, with the Paragon's help she got to the shower. After getting refreshed and resting a bit, she got dressed and left her room in search of her wife. On the way she came across Iuitl.

"Where's my wife?"

"She's in her office, Lady Mistress," the Xioquo responded, then looked taken aback. "Mistress...you are."

"I have regained my powers and returned to my rightful throne," Siobhan finished for her.

Unexpectedly, the Xioquo prostrated herself before her. "Your power is only matched by your wisdom and beauty, Lady Mistress. If I've ever..."

"Rise, my dear," Siobhan interrupted her gently, petting the Xioquo. "You have done nothing to arouse my wrath. You're a good, obedient girl and please me so well."


Meanwhile, Tylania would not be alone for long. Word in this house inevitably travelled fast. Thus the patter of tiny feet could be heard coming from outside. Then little Adril stepped into the room, holding a Nexu plushie in her hands. She looked at the sleeping form of Tylania. "Uh, hullo," she said a bit shyly.

 

[Anya Venari]

[member="Siobhan Kerrigan"]
Tylania had been sleeping, but she was a light dozer, especially in this new setting, and so she jerked awake. She looked at the small child and smiled.
“Hello there, little one! My, you’ve got a friend too I see!” she said. She sat up and patted the bed beside her.
“You must be one of Siobhan’s daughters?” She didn’t know which, she’d heard there was three, but one was much older.

“My name’s Tylania, but you can call me Ty if you want,” she said reassuringly.

 

[Siobhan Kerrigan]

[member="Anya Venari"]


"Her name is Arya," Adril said brightly. A shyly, she sat down on the bedside next to Tylania. "Nice to meet you Ty! I'm Adril." She gave the serene elf lady a good look. Auntie Siobhan had lectured her about all the important elf royals, telling her at length that she would have to one day meet them. But she had trouble remembering all their names! She knitted her brow together. "You're not the drow queen or the desert lady," she surmised. "Are you the wood elf who levitates and makes stuff grow?" she blurted out.


Meanwhile, after some more fawning from sweet Iuitl, Siobhan had made her way to Tegaea's office. Having her powers restored had obviously not cured her of her disabilities, as these were physical not metaphysical in nature. Thus she still walked with a limp. Use of the Force made it more bearable though. It had not been apparent to Siobhan how much she relied on her powers to get by day by day until she had been unable to draw upon them.


Regardless, she knocked on the door and stepped in. "Hey there, love. I got my powers restored and have returned to my true self," she declared dramatically. It was probably just a coincidence that her skirt just happened to show a lot of leg. Her legs were great, after all. Her wife was still noticeably taller than her though.

 

[Anya Venari]

[member="Siobhan Kerrigan"]
“Well hello there, Arya!” she said, petting the nexu.
A noise, as if coming from the toy purred.
“I think she likes me,” Tylania said with a smile. It was a simple trick to project one’s voice, and hopefully would not scare the child.

“I am indeed not the Drow or the desert lady, well observed, Adril! I am indeed the floaty Vashyada.”
A small pot plant in her room grew at her touch, blooming a flower which she picked and offered to Adril.
“Come, my sweet, let’s find your parents and sisters.” She rose, but walked along the deck rather than floating. She didn’t want to alarm the child more than she may have had already.

XXX

Tegaea looked up, raised an eyebrow. “So it seems! I figured when Iuitl didn’t return she had been swept up by your majesty.” Was that a little bit of trolling?
She rose, came forward and gave her wife a kissed and an inspection.
“When you went away with Chesna and Tylania I figured there was some witchcraft involved or else you’d have invited me. Whilst everyone was panicking about ‘disturbances in the Force’ I sent Tempest to make sure everything was okay, and then Iuitl to find you.”
She completed her inspection. “I think you’ll do just fine, my sweet,” she said, giving her a kiss.

 

[Siobhan Kerrigan]

[member="Anya Venari"]


Adril looked a bit startled. "She's not done that before!" She was soon distracted by Tylania making a plant grow. "Neat! That's so cool," she exclaimed, accepting the proffered flower. "It's pretty. Can you show me how to do that?" she asked eagerly.


"Oh, ok," she said, feeling a bit disappointed about having to share the wood elf. "Livy's off reading her...books," she huffed. The last word rolled off her tongue as if were something foul."She's weird. My mummies are off...kissing. It's what they always do. They get embarrased when I spot them." Like every child her age, she found that seeing her parents kiss was the worst. "Elpsis is, uh, off training. She's nice. Does neat fire stuff."


xxx


"Fine? I'll have you know that I will be more fine," Siobhan huffed. Wrapping her arms around her wife, she pulled her into a deep kiss. "It feels good to be back." Her hands roamed over Tegaea's body. There was some groping of her wife's chest and butt before she withdrew.


"So the summit will be in about two weeks. Security will be very tight. It must go off without a hitch. I'd like...our family to be there. The sooner the children get acclimated to events like this, the better for them in the long run, especially Elpsis. It will also help counter the digusting rumours spread by those Coreward Sun parasites."

 

[Anya Venari]

[member="Siobhan Kerrigan"]
“One day, my sweet, I can show you how to do that,” Tylania promised.
“Books are very useful, not just because no one can remember everything, but because we all have to listen to someone else and what they think.”

She smiled slightly. “Dear me, kissing? Well, you are right to stay away. Kissing is something parents do which is very embarrassing for their children and most other people.”
The image of her sister came to mind, there was someone who liked watching and doing kissing.

“Let’s go and find Elpsis then, lead the way, Adril. We can meet Livia on the way.”

XXX

Tegaea meanwhile frowned. “What are they saying now? Not still going on about the livestock are they? We proved their reports were inaccurate and we backed down when we threatened them with court.”

“Regardless, you’re right, we should get them there. I’m sure Elpsis will love that,” she said with a chuckle. Parents didn’t get much their own way with kids, especially older ones, so a bit of a chance to return the trolling was worth it.

 

[Siobhan Kerrigan]

[member="Anya Venari"]


"Oh, I like you," Adril said happily. "My mummies have this room I'm not allowed to go in. I can't hear what they do in it. But any time they come out, one of them is walking is funny and has trouble sitting down. They let Elpsis and Tempest in sometimes. Chesna is in it a lot!" Little children could be very observant, much to their parents' embarrassment.


"Hmm. Ok." She took the hand of the non-floating, floaty elf and off they were. Their search for Elpsis would lead them to a training room. If they ran into Livia on the way, they would inevitably find her reading a book about complex, boring stuff. Like physics or chemistry. Actually...chemistry was not necessarily boring. It helped you blow stuff up.


xxx

"Elpsis doesn't need to love it. She just needs to do her duty. She's the heiress. It's time for her to act like it. Some of her friends are a bad influence on her." Which ones? Sio, you need to narrow things down a bit. "Some decorum would not go amiss either. Make sure she wears something appropriate and doesn't show up in shorts or a stripper outfit. She can regale delegates with her war stories."



"Anya might bring little Ariane, so that will give Livia and Adril another kid to interact with at least. Or Adril at any rate. Livia would probably overwhelm the little elf a bit. I had Livia with me when I met the head of Fire for Effect. She did well then. Bright girl. Needs to learn to keep her know-it-all manners in check. I'll assign Sahal to watch over them. She's loyal and sensible. And they get on well with 'Auntie Sal'. I'm a bit amused by the Eldorai coming to us cap in hand again. Not surprised though."

 

[Anya Venari]

[member="Siobhan Kerrigan"]
Children did tend to get everywhere and could always sense when their parents were keeping something from them. On the scale of universal justice they were always ready to register something us unfair.
“Ah…well, it’s probably just meetings with really uncomfortable chairs,” Tylania said, though even she didn’t sound convincing in her lie. She was privately amazed at the seemingly endless capacity for the couple to make love. It was likely just as well they were not a traditional couple or they might have a dozen children by now!

They did indeed come upon Livia. The girl was wandering whilst reading a datapad. She looked up owlishly at Tylania.
“Are you Lady Ty-lania?” she asked with a delicate emphasising of the name.
“That is I, child. Adril, I take it this is your sister?”

XXX

“Sahal would be a good guardian. She’s loyal and patient and gentle. She told me once she wanted some daughters of her own but that she had never been able to for…well…you know. I’ll give her a good briefing. Doubtless Anya will have someone with her to escort the princess. It’ll do them all good to see others of their own age.”

“As for Elpsis, I agree. She’s a good girl, but if she wants to play her part she has to act the role. I’ll have Chesna dress her properly and give her a brief lesson in how to handle the formal occasions. She can even stay with her as her attendant. That will help, to have a good coach on side. And who better than an Eldorai paragon to see all her sisters and cousins come to this meeting?”

 

[Siobhan Kerrigan]

[member="Anya Venari"]


((Sahal needs a hug)).


"Yes, and she's reading stuff as usual."

"I am broadening my horizons and expanding the breadth my knowledge."

"And now she's using big words again," Adril huffed.

"If you read more and dreamt less about swords, you would know what they mean."

"See, I told you she's not nice," Adril told Tylania, tugging at her sleeve.

"You're making our family look bad," Livia chided her, turning her gaze to Tylania.

xxx


"Agreed. The cloners will not have finished growing Elpsis' new arm by the time the summit begins, but that can't be helped. She'll simply have to make do with one arm. If some prissy Eldorai aristo turns up her nose, well, a lioness does not care for the bleatings of cowardly sheep who cannot even fight their own battles and have not worked a single day in their life. She's fought on the frontlines, they've cowered."


For someone who was an aristocrat and obsessed with her 'legacy', Siobhan still had an extremely negative opinion of blue bloods. She would argue that she had worked to get where she was, instead of being born as a rich idiot with no day job. Then again, most blue bloods, regardless of race, were stupid. The fact that her daughter might be uncomfortable attending a high-level summit due to her maimed state did not concern her.


"I'll assign the Granite Guard to guard duties. They're a loyal, tough lot. Not to mention intimidating. Plus some of the Excurbitors. GRU will screen all attendants. I'll put Ziva on the case. Hmmph, what should I wear?" she wondered aloud. One of the drawbacks of being a fashionista with an enormous closet was that you were spoilt for choice.

 

[Anya Venari]

[member="Siobhan Kerrigan"]
Tylania put a hand on both their shoulders. “My dears, please. There is nothing wrong with reading books; they grant you knowledge and insight to the future and past. But likewise there’s nothing wrong with choosing to be a warrior and defend what you love. I see you two are very different, but what you should always remember is that you are sisters, and that means your bond is special.”

They moved on, Adril guiding Tylania down to a training room. She could hear the sound of exertion, the clashing of lightsabres, and the occasional fan of heat.
“Do you come down here to watch your sister often, dear?” she asked Adril. “What were you reading, Livia? Is it interesting?”

XXX

Tegaea listened to Siobhan’s little exhortation and raised an eyebrow.
“Indeed not. It would be an exceptionally stupid person who would dismissed someone because of a war wound. Those who claim to be of great bloodlines are not always blessed with great wisdom. With great entitlement comes great hubris. At least Elpsis does not suffer from that.”

“I think you would look good in black, love. I will go in red, I’ve had a dress delivered which should serve me nobly.”

 

[Siobhan Kerrigan]

[member="Anya Venari"]


"But...She started it!" both girls said near-simultaneously.

"Alright," Adril muttered, reluctantly backing down. She did not want to ruin her chances to learn how to float. "I do sometimes. It's fun! Sometimes she and whoever she's fighting start kissing and shoo me away." There seemed to be a lot of that going on. "Elpsis is nice though."

Livia held up her impressive looking book. "Quantum New: New Discoveries in Quantum Physics!" she announced happily. "It's fascinating. Would you like to look at it?"

Adril muttered something under her breath. Inside, the electrical crackle of two lightsabres in close contact, accompanied by grunts of exertion. Elpsis tried to fend off Tempest's staccato of lightsabre strikes.


xxx


Siobhan wondered for a moment whether there was a hidden meaning in her wife's words and she was making fun of her. Then her mind shifted elsewhere. "Oh, have you? Well, then you will have to model for me. I will have to make sure it fits in all the right places," as she said these words her hands began to wander again.

 

[Anya Venari]

[member="Siobhan Kerrigan"]
Tylania looked at the book curiously, leafing through it.
“This is certainly rather advanced, Livia. If you even understand half of it you’ll be doing well. I haven’t read anything like this for…well, a very long time. Yarkul does not breed quantum physicists, it seems.”

“Yes, there certainly seems to be a lot of kissing going on, an obsession even!” she said with a trollish grin.

In the training room, Tempest was applying strikes and Elpsis was parrying…as best she could.
“Blade up, Elpsis. Keep the blade high. With one hand you need to rely on deflection rather than sheer strength. Use movement, slide my attacks away, don’t block them front on.”
She waited a moment and then sent a flurry of blows at the redhead, not even noticing the new arrivals.

XXX

Tegs nodded. “Then I shall have to make sure I show you. In the meantime we’d better take some measurements for your fitting…”
Cue fade to black most likely.

 

[Elpsis Kerrigan]

[member="Anya Venari"]


Lightsabre combat was, all things considered, not Elpsis' forte. She was not terrible, but just not great at it. She broadly knew what was dumb and what worked, not what was exceptional. Still, she tried. Her blade shot up and she held on to the hilt with her one remaining hand as a storm of blows came crashing down upon her.


The girl was unusually quiet. Normally she would throw in a quip or a lame attempt at flirtation. But this time words did not leave her lips. Beads of sweat dripped down her face and back, perspiration gathering on her hand. The first blow she almost knocked the lightsabre out of her grasp, another she managed to duck under, a third she met with her lightsabre. The twin orange blades crackled and scissored as she parried the strike away. Thus the dance of sabres continued.


She had felt the power surge from earlier - and not cared. Doubtless the pompous old cow was busy gloating about returning to her 'rightful throne'. Let her groupies puff up her bloated ego. Elpsis wanted no part in that nonsense. No doubt Siobhan would cease her transparent, feigned attempts to be nice. Elpsis concentrated on the blade. Training helped her clear her mind. She side-stepped, parried, ducked...


"Hey, Elpsis," Adril exclaimed as the trio entered. Hearing her voice disrupted Elpsis' concentration. Enough for Tempest's blade to push past her guard and deliver a good sting towards her forearm. The blades were obviously not at full power, but Elpsis still yelped.

 

[Anya Venari]

[member="Elpsis Kerrigan-Alcori"]
There was a collective wince as Elpsis cried out. Tempest immediately deactivated her blade and came over to check.
“Gee, sorry, Elpsis,” Adril said sheepishly.

Tylania stepped forward though.
“Elpsis, a pleasure, my name’s Tylania. May I?” She looked at the red welt on the girl’s arm and passed a hand over it. Immediately the pain would reside and the mark would be less pronounced.
Tempest for her part had stepped back from the bright energies of the Light, like a Xioquo exposed to the sun briefly.

“I’m sorry to interrupt you both. Adril and Livia wished to introduce me to you. I’m here on behalf of the Vashyada. I can come back later if you preferred?”

Tempest muttered something under her breath, but said nothing aloud.

 

[Elpsis Kerrigan]

[member="Anya Venari"]


"It's alright, Addy. Just a sting is all." Elpsis stiffened slightly when Tylania's hand touched. Once she had been able to heal injuries herself. But the dark magicks [member="Matsu Xiangu"] had unleashed and which Elpsis had partly absorbed during their first encounter on Ession had robbed her of it. Dark lines had remained on her forehead. No point talking to Sio. Or Tegaea. One would give her a lecture, the other would agree with the lecture. Sometimes Elpsis wondered whether Siobhan might be jealous of her.


She winced, as if feeling a burn, then relaxed as the sensation passed. "Thanks," she said quietly. "No, it's fine. We were trying to make me less crap with a glowstick," she said a bit self-deprecatingly. "This is Tempest, my girlfriend and Mistress of the Order. Sure you don't want to spend more time with their majesties though?"